Journalism of Courage
The practice sessions of a team of boys from various NGOs and orphanages have reached a feverish pitch days before their cricket match against the Under 14 Maharashtra Cricket Team
A team of 22 boys from the remand homes of Shivaji Nagar,Yerawada,orphanages of Pune and Lonavala,have been practising their cricket skills. They have been selected out of over 100 children from various NGOs across the state. And on June 10 and 11,they will play against the under-14 Maharashtra Cricket Team. They share the same passion for cricket as the boys who get selected in the Maharashtra Cricket Association teams,so why not give them the same opportunity to be recognised on a national platform? says Sheetal Kharka,the founder of The Innocent Heroes Foundation that has organised this cricket match.
Umesh Lavande,a 15-year-old from the Shivaji Remand Home,is the captain of this team. He explains his strategy. When the ball is new,we get wickets easily,so I ask our fast bowlers Shivaji,Babloo and Govind to take overs initially. And,as the game goes on,our spinners like Jai and Purushuttam come in, says this 11th grade Science student.
Babloo Navle,the 14-year-old fast bowler from Antar Bharti Balgram Orphanage catches the 6.25 am local train from Lonavala everyday to get to the practice ground at Wanowrie on time. When I was younger,I would sit near the boundary rope and pass the ball to my seniors. They noticed that I throw the ball well and thus asked me to play with them, he says. Another player,15-year-old Sheik Salman is a fast bowler who usually wins the man of the match title for taking most wickets. I want to study civil engineering and simultaneously build my career in cricket, he says.
Players like Ranjit Bansode and Purushuttam Sangpal from the Shivaji Nagar Remand home and Jai Shinde from an orphanage in Vishrantwadi are Sachin Tendulkar fans. Playing these matches will get us some recognition, says Shinde who hopes to one day get selected for the Indian National Team.
The training we provide these kids is for their wholesome development of body,mind and soul. Children from different NGOs come together,share their joys and sorrows and realise that it is up to them to make something worthwhile out of their lives , says Narendra Prakash Dedge,coach of the team.
